Bruins 5, Canadiens 3: Rally boys even series

Saturday

May 3, 2014 at 8:23 PMMay 3, 2014 at 8:25 PM

At risk of falling behind 0-2 in their second-round series, the Bruins are even at a game apiece heading to Montreal.

By Dan CagenDaily News staff

BOSTON — At some point in the last few years, Claude Julien realized he didn't have to talk to his team much in those situations.Down by a couple goals, third period, potentially the season on the line. They don't need to hear from a grumpy old coach. They know what needs to happen."I've been around these guys for a long time, and you just let them be and let them get themselves going," Julien said. "You just do your job as a coach — change the lines, try to put the right people out there, and the rest, they took care of."On Saturday afternoon, taking care of it meant scoring four goals in 7:58 in the final half of the third period, turning a two-goal deficit into a 5-3 victory over the Canadiens. At risk of falling behind 0-2 in their second-round series, the Bruins are even at a game apiece heading to Montreal.This was just an anthill compared to the Bruins' mountain of a comeback in the Game 7 miracle against the Maple Leafs last season. And the Bruins have more experience than they'd like in that regard; just two days earlier, they worked their way out of a 2-0 hole to take the Canadiens to double-overtime in Game 1.Not that there was anything clear that it would happen again Saturday, when the Habs took a 3-1 lead on Thomas Vanek's second power-play goal of the day. The Canadiens had a two-goal bulge and the Bruins were steaming as they "put up with a lot of crap," according to Julien.The Canadiens had six power plays Saturday, several on questionable calls. The final power play gave them that 3-1 edge."We just talked about staying composed," Brad Marchand said. "We were getting too riled up about the penalties called. We just wanted to regroup and stay a little more disciplined and play the game."Dougie Hamilton, Patrice Bergeron and Reilly Smith brought the Bruins ahead, then Milan Lucic scored off the right post and into the empty net to seal it with 1:06 left.Brad Marchand teamed up with Hamilton at 10:56. Both redeemed themselves for earlier boo-boos that had the Habs in front. Marchand's neutral-zone turnover in the second period led to Mike Weaver's goal, and in the third Hamilton's interference penalty on Brendan Gallagher led to Vanek Goal No. 2.In a trademark move, Marchand stopped short with the puck and spun around, finding Hamilton at the point for a slapper. It was 3-2 with 9:04 left."I think everyone kind of turned it up [after the goal]," Hamilton said. "Maybe they started panicking a little bit. I'm not really sure what happened, but just kind of get the momentum, get the crowd going a little bit, and just kind of go with it."The rock had started coming down the mountain. When Patrice Bergeron's shot from the right boards deflected off Francis Bouillon for the equalizer with 5:43 left, that Black-and-Gold boulder was crushing everything in its path.The Habs couldn't contain the Bruins. Every shift the puck was deep. Where the Bruins had been weak earlier, they were smart, secure and dominant.And the Bruins rode their momentum. They sensed they could go for the kill. Rookie defenseman Torey Krug was at the end of a shift and set to be replaced by Hamilton on a line change.He stayed on the ice. It was a game-changing decision.Bergeron was rushing the puck up the ice, and Krug, the Bruins' best offensive defenseman, had no interest in leaving just when the going was getting good."I like to play in that zone," Krug said. "It's just one of those feels [to not come off], and staying out there, you're rushing the puck and you don't want to leave when there's an opportunity."Krug scored in Game 1 with a blast from the left circle, his sweet spot on the ice. Habs defenseman Michael Bournival took that away, so Krug sent a seam pass to Smith. Brendan Gallagher tipped the pass, but only slowed it down and Smith hammered it in."I think it was the right move, right?" Julien said of Krug staying on. "He made a heck of a pass to Smith there, but sometimes a player, they maybe feel a little tired but they see there's an outnumbered situation and an opportunity here to jump in, and I think that's where Torey is good at seeing those kind of things. … That's just hockey instinct, in my mind.""I think I knew it was coming too," Hamilton said, adding, "I told [Andrej Meszaros] on the bench, ‘Give it to Torey.' "Moments later, Lucic was pounding his chest after the empty-net goal, staring back at a crowd going bonkers. The Bruins are going to Montreal tied 1-1."We knew we were capable of doing that," Tuukka Rask said. "And then we never quit. We keep plugging away, keep playing our style, and sometimes it pays off, and sometimes it doesn't. The biggest thing is that we know we can do it and we never stop."Dan Cagen can be reached at 508-626-3848 or dcagen@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanCagen.